LoGaS Archive

Gossamer Guilds: Praecones (DICELESS) This expansion for Lords of Gossamer and Shadows clocks in at 17 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page inside of front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 13 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This review was requested as a prioritized review by my patreons. This supplement begins with preliminary notes, written in character by Shanya Talis, which establishes the praecones as wandering bards, storytellers and occasional spies that traverse the gossamer worlds. Membership of the organization is loose, to put it mildly: You need a drive for discovery, the ability to travel the gossamer worlds and a passion for storytelling. Oddly, juggler, acrobats and clowns […]

The Long Walk: Life on the Grand Stair (DICELESS) This HUGE tome for Lords of Gossamer & Shadow (Abbreviated LoGaS below for brevity’s sake) clocks in at 205 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page dev and playtester thanks, 1 page dedication to Steven D. Russell (Rest in peace, you’re missed, man…), 1 page ToC, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 199 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This book was moved up in my reviewing queue as a prioritized review at the request of my patreons. All right, we begin with a well-written piece of prose before we dive into this book…but what exactly is this? The question here is less […]

Lords of Gossamer & Shadows Icon and Icon NPCs Decks (Diceless/system-neutral) And now for something complete different! This was moved up my review-queue due to me receiving a physical copy of the product in question. From the get-go, I was positively surprised – not sure if it’s due to a change in policy on behalf of OBS or not, but the cards I received arrived in absolutely pristine condition, contained in hard-shell plastic cases, which prevented any creases or other unpleasant surprises. Beyond that, this deck of cards is massive and contains a selection of US Poker-Size 2.5” x 3.5 ” cards with round corners. The card-stock paper is high-quality and employs a 305 gsm matte and […]

Addendum: Shape Shifting (DICELESS) This installment of the Addendum-series for DICELESS roleplaying clocks in at 20 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 2 pages of advertisement, leaving us with 16 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Shape shifting is contextualized as a power that is neither wholly of the Eidolon, nor of the Umbra; instead, it is an oscillating power of change in between and for this reason, mastery of either and shape shifting are a volatile combination, but more on that later. Structure-wise, shape shifting is tiered in 4 levels: Lesser Shape Shifting (15 pts.), Shape Shifting (35 pts.), Advanced Shape Shifting (65 pts.) and Exalted Shape Shifting (85 pts.). Generally, shape shifting […]

Lucien’s Guide: Legends & Lies (Diceless) This installment of the Lucien’s Guide-series for Rite Publishing’s critically acclaimed Diceless system clocks in at 18 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 16 pages of content! This pdf, presented as an account of famous Lucien, depicts various legends and ominous tales that make their rounds among the blessed beings capable of navigating the Grand Stair – generally, the respective entries begin with a brief legend that can be encountered, to then go on and discuss the truth…or one of it, behind the respective legend. The first of these we encounter would deal with Doorghuls – the legend of mimic-like creatures, masquerading as doors, waiting to swallow hapless […]

Gossamer Worlds – INK (Diceless) This trip to one of the countless Gossamer Worlds clocks in at 15 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 13 pages of content, so let’s take a step through this door! Okay, have you read Flatland? If not, I’d strongly suggest you do so – for its implications are very much relevant for this Gossamer World: You see, INK is unlike most such worlds in that it exists as a 2D-world, where visitors are subject to the so-called rendering, as they are translated into 2-dimensional versions of themselves – for this world is one of sentient comics, classic ink drawings and the like – INK is layered on sheets […]

Gossamer Worlds: Ring of Fire (Diceless) This installment of the Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 14 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 12 pages of content, so let’s take a step through the door and visit this world! This time around, we’re getting gritty and apocalyptic, big time: Legends tell of this world being an Ourouboros, a Dyson ring (artificially created ring world, in short) that was crafted to act like a kind of petri-dish for civilizations. Unfortunately for this world a Crimson King-like traveller from the Grand Stair, the nefarious Man with Red Hands, a disembodied spirit capable of possession lesser life-forms, has taken over the world and is, laconically speaking, making the […]

Gossamer Worlds: Planet Fiction (Diceless) This deluxe-length-installment of the excellent Gossamer Worlds series of Diceless-RPG-supplements clocks in at 41 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 37 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Okay, want the short version? If you’re even remotely bibliophile, then get this. The long version of the review will be a tad bit more complex and enlightening: Picture, among the myriad of possible worlds out there on the Grand Stair a door that leads, more literally than others, straight into imagination – or rather, into the direct representation thereof. To be more precise: Think of the world of Kipling, Doyle and similar […]

Gossamer Worlds: The Otherlands (Diceless) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 18 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 16 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So, we begin this installment of the Gossamer Worlds-series with a warning – the theories herein are considered heresy by the established Lords and Ladies. You see, among the vast plethora of worlds and realities accessible, or so goes the hypothesis herein, there are some that may be considered…semi-sentient. Or at least “alive” in the broadest sense that the reality grows…like a plant…or a tumor. From a seed of contact, a chrysalis springs, ultimately leaving only a husk reality behind – or so […]

Gossamer Options: Characters (Diceless) This MASSIVE book for Lords of Gossamer and Shadows clocks in at 73 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page advertisement, leaving us with a colossal 69 pages of content, so let’s take a look! What began as a reverse design based on the art that was available via the deck funded via LoGaS’ KS soon became this massive book – and oh boy. But let me begin differently: What’s the one thing you need to crunch in LoGaS, the one thing that takes time out of your GM’s day that does not pertain weaving the most awesome stories you can conceive? Yes, that would be statblocks for NPCs. […]

Gossamer Worlds: Poseidon’s Rapture (DICELESS) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 17 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 2 pages of advertisement, leaving us with 13 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Poseidon’s Rapture was a bountiful world like many others – with ages good and bad…and then, Poseidon left…or died…or was abducted. The world’s god was gone, and soon after he had abandoned the place, the deluge began – or rather, the lack thereof. Mysteriously, the water did start to rise, swallowing most of the land of this world, forcing civilization beneath the waves – into remnants of former places, ships… Poseidon’s Rapture is literally land-under. Above and below […]

Gossamer Worlds: Poetica Mundi Fifteen pages in total await, with two devoted to cover and credits, leave thirteen, all suffused with content galore. This must have required a gazillion of edits… Why? Let’s not tarry and read more! Now this is unlike any of its brethren before, even though I’ve reviewed more than a score. You see, there’s magic in worlds uncounted – and on others, you’ll find mechs, laser-mounted. But in this world, which sees its fair share of strife, reigns but one principle: Poetry is life. And yes, let me state this brief and terse: This whole book is written mostly in verse! Where the forces of nature itself align, and pentameters grow the waves, with […]

Threats: Secrets of the Annunaki (Diceless) This installment of the Threats-series for LoGaS clocks in at 17 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 15 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Following the tradition of LoGaS-supplements, the content herein is framed by a well-crafted frame-narrative and provided in well-written prose. This prose guides us, via speculations and potential truths a GM can use and treat as correct (or incorrect!) through the depictions of the Annunaki. But what are they? The strangely and suddenly appearing Annunaki are creatures of Eidolon, usually depicted as glowing diagrams drawn into thin air and moving akin to a roughly humanoid shape. The anecdotes of Annunaki influence are […]

Gossamer Worlds: Incursion Earth 626 (Diceless) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 19 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 17 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Incursion Earth 626 is one of the infinite allotopias (i.e. alternate earths) than can be reached via the Grand Stair – but is a unique one. In 1985, reality cracked – this time not due to earth’s humans screwing it up, but due to an extremely expansionist empire called the “Incursion” piercing the veils of reality. These technocratic conquerors botched something, though, when they arrived in this reality and mankind suddenly was faced with a vast influx of psionic power – from […]

Gossamer Worlds: Dragonhearth This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 17 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 15 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So what is dragonhearth? Well, if the name wasn’t ample clue for you, let me fill you in: It is a world of DRAGONS…yeah, I’m proud of my astute observation as well. kidding aside, everything on this world is draconic to some extent – from serpentine waves of light to myriad forms of draconic life, there are a lot of supreme serpents inhabiting this place. So attuned to the very notion of dragons is this world, that even plants and most predatory animals share some […]

Gossamer Worlds: Hollow Thune (Diceless) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 13 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 11 pages of content, so let’s take a look! What happens if Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s thesis in Vril, The Power of the Master Race, of a subterranean master-race and their quasi-mystical super-technology was set against a backdrop of genocidal struggle between two competing races and then combined with a classic “you dug too deep” twist, unleashing dread Erebi on the genocidal victors of the struggle? We get one messed up setting. Add to that a sprinkling of hollow earth and H.G Wellsian Time Machine and we have even more of a mess – […]

Gossamer Worlds: GlimmerGloam (Diceless) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 13 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 11 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So what is GlimmerGloam? The easiest way to describe it, would be to call it a realm of dark, dualistic whimsy – somewhere between the narratives of the realm of the fey and classic tales of Alice, albeit more akin to American McGee’s interpretation. It is a world, where different species of fey abound and the Umbra rules – where counting steps or latent attempts at cartography only result in the very land thwarting your attempts. It is also a place, where the only […]

Gossamer Worlds: Megacities of Neo_Neo This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 13 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 11 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Okay, so what happens if the gritty cyberpunk future of Shadowrun, minus magic, gets utterly and thoroughly one-upped? We receive cities sprawling continents and oceans, suffused with a constant overpopulation and stimulation, facilitated by the omnipresent MegaWeb that requires your ping every half a second to continue to cater to your needs. The look into this world is at once fascinating and disturbing – when the vast corporations like Uni-Goggle or the Kocha-Cola corporation have suddenly influence over just about everything, including the […]

Gossamer Worlds: The Black (Diceless) This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 12 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 10 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So what is The Black? The Black is a vast universe of thousands of high-scifi empires, galaxies-spanning confederations and empires, a realm where terra-forming and faster-than-light-travel are a dime a dozen among the civilized races; A realm where a powerful, immortal space-pharaoh has fleets of black pyramid-shaped ships at his beck and call, each of which can blast whole planets asunder. It is a realm where lobster-like xenobiologists and Nietzeschean centaur-like species abound, where a viral/fungoid psychic infection may depopulate whole planets. […]

Gossamer Worlds: Aethersaur Island This installment of the evocative Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 12 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 10 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So, what happens if three worlds converge? Awesomeness, that’s what! What a prehistoric earth, a steampunky Edwardian age world and one of eldritch horrors and alien vistas blended, the result was pretty much catastrophic, resulting in a rather small gossamer world, wherein aether-powered technology and magic co-exist and the ingenuity of mankind obviously found a way to blend aether and dinosaurs to create rather badass beasts of burden and war machines. So far, so cool – but, of course, that’s not where it stops […]

Lucien’s Guide to the Black Files If you read this review, one of the following is true: 1. You’re me. Hello, handsome devil! 2. I have shared this information with you – don’t screw this up! 3.You have stolen this homepage – I have been notified of your identity and location. 4. You have killed me. Good for you, but you have eliminated the ward that left a whole bunch of nastiness in check. 5. I have died and you took up my mantle – good for you, but I hope I’ve had the chance to provide the keys, because I wasn’t joking in 4. … This intro mirrors (in less vivid prose) how this guide begins – to […]

Gossamer Heroes This LoGaS-supplement is 12 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 10 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This pdf kicks off with a short introduction to the matter at hand – namely, the depiction of new player characters, readily generated at the suggestions of Kickstarter-patrons to serve as player characters. hence, by intention and to allow for a user-base as wide as possible, the characters herein have a limited breadth of powers, which should not be considered a detriment, though. So, who do we get? First of them would be Cordelia – a kind of pirate-queen/gossamer lady studded with quite an array of different unique magical […]

Lords of Gossamer and Shadows Addendum: Empathy (Diceless) This pdf clocks in at 14 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 12 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This supplement details a new Lesser Power for LoGaS, namely empathy. the power costs 30 points and is based on Psyche, though long-term use also makes endurance important. As you probably have gleaned by now, Empathy allows you to open a gate to other minds, for better and for worse – causing or diminishing pain, even controlling lesser minds becomes possible, but at a risk – the channel opened goes two ways and makes one susceptible to psychic attacks, Icons and magic in […]

Gossamer Worlds: Ossuary Empire (DICELESS) This installment of the Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 12 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 10 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Now the eidolon is often considered to be the safer side of forces in LoGaS – this is an example why that is a gross and inaccurate reduction. Thematically based roughly around ancient quasi-Persian myths in style, once this place was ruled by the dîv – manifestations of eidolon that subsumed all in perfect order, only to wage war upon one another in the end. Oh, and the final two standing were nuked with a neutron bomb. In this world wracked by deicides, […]

Gossamer Worlds: Verse Arcanum (DICELESS) This installment of the Gossamer Worlds-series clocks in at 10 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 8 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So what is the Verse Arcanum? In one sentence, I’d describe it as “ye old fantasy setting” – elves, dwarves, magic galore, curses, prophecies and adventurers – fey and miles-long wyrms (true dragons in the most lethal, city-leveling sense…) and just about all other things and creatures you know from these settings can be found in this UNIVERSE (not just world!). Rainbow bridges? Check. Nasty Umbra-worshipping subterranean dwarves that specialize in unmaking magic? Check. Dual-natured elves that are at once light and dark elves? […]

Gossamer Worlds: Nexopolis This installment of the Gossamer Worlds-series depicting infinite worlds along teh Grand Stair clocks in at 51 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 48 pages of content, so let’s… …wait. What? Yes, this is a break of form for the series: Where usually, Matt Banach provides, short, extremely affordable primers for worlds that can be essentially considered campaign seeds, this one is penned by Matt Forbeck and is more of a full-blown sourcebook. Now the book kicks in with a 2-page full color map of the island and city of Nexopolis and while not bad, it is one weak spot of the pdf – compared […]

Gossamer Worlds: Stratospheria This installment of Rite Publishing’s Gossamer Worlds-series is 10 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 8 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This time around, we walk through one of the infinite doors to the realm of Stratospheria – a realm where Umbra and Eidolon clash in truly iconic ways, for on the gas giant Aerion Prime, it is only eidolon-influenced technology that makes life possible in the very first place. Gigantic, flying cities exist in the thin habitable layer of the world, serving as hyper-technology havens for both humans and the avian raptori, while the nigh-immortal gaseous jinn roam the skies. Super-storms roam in […]